Whew! the question that everyone is hesitant to ask; how can you afford to homeschool your kids in 2024? its an uncomfortable topic for most (its money right??) but its also the biggest question my husband and I asked ourselves when we first discussed homeschooling. So, its an important one to share with mama’s that are trying to decide if they can make it work too!
I am going to start with giving you a little bit of our history so you can see how we ended up here financially; then I’ll discuss what we do, and more importantly DON’T do, to afford to homeschool. Sound good?? lets dive in!
So a little background; my husband and I both have Bachelors of Science degrees. Both of our degrees were predominately paid for by the Army; so we have had very little student debt. While we did not make that decision together, nor with this future in mind, it definitely helps us to afford our lifestyle now! We also were able to purchase our first home on a very low interest rate, and subsequently sell it two years later for a considerable profit when the market was high. That was honestly luck of the draw and the market! That profit was essential in getting our next home built and decreasing our mortgage payment. I mention those two components first because they are very hard for people to replicate; so I like to set it aside as a way to help mama’s set realistic expectations! okay now we’ll get into the nitty gritty things that you can apply in almost any family to allow you to afford to homeschool.
Things in general we DO NOT do to afford homeschooling
- Over extend our mortgage
first and foremost; we have always made sure our mortgage payment was based on one sole income. We do this to make sure we don’t live beyond our means. In fact we have done this over the years even when we both had significant salaries! This isn’t something everyone can do but this is what has allowed us the flexibility to individually make career changes along the way that have advanced our overall finances. This ensured that when we took the dive to homeschool I could leave my full time salary and know we could pay our main debt. A huge misconception when we started building was that it was extremely expensive. Its actually much cheaper than purchasing the same property with an existing home. BUT it can be risky and a bit emotionally traumatizing! We were able to move into our new home on 5 acres for less debt than we would have living in town because we were willing to live in an RV for almost 2 years and take on a lot of risk of developing a property without existing permitting.
2. New cars/Car Payments
Depending on your family circumstances not having a car payment can free up $400+ per car per month! My husband’s truck is over 20 years old, and my truck/our family vehicle is 8 years old and I plan to drive it for the next decade unless it quits! Honestly, I thought this one would bother me more! BUT now that I have kids and they do their best to destroy my truck on a daily basis… I’m okay waiting until they’re much older to replace it!
3. Consumer Debt
we have almost zero consumer debt, that means other than our mortgage we don’t have any debt payments. Therefore any hobbies we decide to pick up (like camping or dirt biking) we have only done when we could swing it without a payment.
4. Little Things that add up
Okay! those are the really big eggs that allowed us to go down to one sole income (with the income from my business being supplemental.) Now lets talk about the little sacrifices that add up!Theres also a lot of little things that really stack up; for instance We have been doing all of our hair cuts in home for the last three years. That may not sound like much but my husbands haircuts alone were $480.00 per year! I don’t color or treat my hair and my wonderful sister is a hairstylist so she gives me a free haircut about once a year.
I do not do ANY hired cosmetics or self care appointments; that means no artificial nails, eye lashes, waxing, pedicures, massages. Depending on your preferences this can be 1000’s of dollars a year!
We do not go out to eat very often to eat and I cook most things from scratch to keep grocery bills down.
We also do very little travel; about once every other year we use credit card points to go somewhere (Nashville twice because we know we love it!) in the US.
We do not have the new gadget in any category; whether its our three year old phones, old TV’s, plain watches, grandmas old kitchen aid… we just do our best to buy things used or make due with what we already have! most of our furniture in our home is thrifted or family hand me downs.
Things we DO to afford homeschooling
- My business!
First and foremost is my Family Photography business! I was so fortunate to have a passion for photography (and a business/entrepreneurship minor from college!) in order to make supplemental income without leaving home very often. This was the perfect career for my family for homeschooling because I can flex it around my husband’s rigid schedule to ensure he is home to watch the kids when I leave for sessions! I will add that I know many families that homeschool that have two incomes! There are a few ways to do this from opposite work schedules to one spouse finding a work from home or part time schedule.
2. Charter school
this year we enrolled our oldest in a charter school in order to recoup some of our homeschooling costs (this particular charter gives you $1200 per year towards curriculum and activities) This was able to pay for her year of gymnastics as well as a few other activities and supplies. It also offered a part day once a week for her to go to the learning center for electives.
3. Budget for Homeschool supplies
Its really easy to let your homeschool expenditures get out of hand. (i.e. adorable homeschool room decor) We utilize curriculum that only costs about $300.00 per year per child; everything else we try to source from the library or free online sources. We also keep as many activities in the free category as possible; for instance, I’ve never taken the kiddos to a trampoline park but we spend lots of time on hikes, local parks, lakes in the summer, and our own property or family properties.
WHEWWW! that was a lot of information! but I truly hope it helps you understand the intricacies of making homeschooling affordable for a middle class family. This is my new favorite topic to discuss with Moms so please let me know if you have any questions at all and keep your eyes out for more answered Homeschooling questions HERE!
Love,
Abby
